Construction is rising on Etihad Park, the home stadium for Major League Soccer’s New York City Football Club (NYCFC) at 126-87 Willets Point Boulevard in Willets Point, Queens. Designed by HOK, the 24,851-seat venue will stand as the centerpiece of a 23-acre redevelopment plan along with a new 650-seat public school, a hotel, and more than 150,000 square feet of public open space. The facility will also be the first fully electric stadium in New York City and in MLS history. The project site is bounded by 127th Street to the northeast, 35th Avenue to the northwest, Willets Point Boulevard to the southeast, and Seaver Way and Citi Field to the southwest.
The stadium’s steel-framed superstructure has begun to take shape along the western side of the property, rising above the auto repair shops that line Seaver Way. Most of these adjacent low-rise structures will be razed to make way for forthcoming housing developments.
Etihad Park. Photo by Michael Young.
Etihad Park. Photo by Michael Young.
Etihad Park. Photo by Michael Young.
Etihad Park. Photo by Michael Young.
Etihad Park. Photo by Michael Young.
Etihad Park. Photo by Michael Young.
Etihad Park. Photo by Michael Young.
Etihad Park. Photo by Michael Young.
Etihad Park. Photo by Michael Young.
Etihad Park. Photo by Michael Young.
The renderings in the main photo and below showcase the stadium with partially covered stands and an open-air pitch. The southwestern corner will feature a beveled, LED-covered entryway along Seaver Way. The following renderings preview the facility’s interior.
Etihad Park. Designed by HOK.
Etihad Park. Designed by HOK.
Etihad Park. Designed by HOK.
The stadium will reportedly include 3,436 supporters section seats, 64 seats in pitch-side lounges, and 287 ADA-accessible and companion seats. The facility will also feature 14 bars, seven beer markets, 16 single-unit bathrooms, 18 women’s bathrooms, and 17 men’s bathrooms. Additional design components include eight pitchside lounges, 23 lower-level suites, nine upper-level suites, and two “Mini Clubs” on the upper level. The Lower Suite Level will also feature the Chairman’s Suite, located midfield with a private bar, bathrooms, and a phone booth.
The stadium’s name was set by a $20 million, 20-year naming rights agreement between Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, and NYCFC, which has partnered with the Middle Eastern airline brand since 2014. Etihad Airways is the front-of-shirt partner for NYCFC’s first team and boys academy, as well as a supporter of NYCFC’s community work through the club’s nonprofit foundation, City in the Community. The airline is also one of the primary partners of the New York City Soccer Initiative, a $3 million program launched in 2016 to create and maintain 50 mini-pitches across the city and expand free soccer programming for the next generation of New Yorkers.
The closest subway is the 7 train at the Mets-Willets Point station along Roosevelt Avenue to the south.
Etihad Park is expected to be built with 100 percent private financing and open before the 2027 MLS Season.
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“Nothing is invented, for it is written in nature first”
What does this random quote have to do with this article or the project???
Makes you sound like a bot.
Out of the dingiest collection of muddy streets rises a brand new neighborhood it’s almost like redeveloping the moon
Well, there’s no existing development on the moon to re-develop, but I get your point!
This is SO SICK. Not a soccer fan at all, but excited for this. THE FUTURE!
She’s a beauty! One of the better looking newer stadiums. Bravo
Etihad Park will be the first fully electric MLS stadium and will seek LEED Gold certification. Systems for rainwater recovery, solar panels, local materials, and green roofs will be implemented. The stadium is built above the flood zone, increasing resilience to climate change effects.
There are many Latin Americans who are drawn to the soccer games in Flushing Meadows. They will be looking forward to this. That section of Willets Point Blvd. in Flushing Meadows was previously a disgrace.
I agree. One time I had to cut through Seaver Way to make a U-turn during a rainstorm many years ago, and will never forget how the “road” was extremely muddy, dirty and a total mess from end to end. That row of auto shops made the experience feel like driving through a third world country
Yeah the idiot politicians ruined another potential gem for the Bronx. The team currently had teams of Latinos and Africans (lot in The Bronx) playing in Macombs Dam Park next to Yankee Stadium in leagues. What will all of those kids do now that the team is moving to Queens? Fools. The team had tried for years to build this down from Yankee Stadium and the fools said they didn’t need another stadium.. What brains. Someone should have explained to them that the Mets and the US Open are right next to where NYCFC is moving to.
What they meant in saying but didn’t in saying they “didn’t need another stadium near Yankee Stadium” is that they didn’t want to see it in an economically low-income, fully developed neighborhood. In Queens, they envisioned it surrounded by new, market-rate housing. Also now, the Casino seems a likely done deal, so the whole area incl US Open Tennis site, ’64-65 World’s Fair Site and Flushing Meadow Corona Park will become a joined area. From a Developer’s perspective (and they carried a LOT of weight in this decision), Flushing was clearly their desired option ($$$$$).
Not necessarily my opinion, but I see why it was done in Flushing – They’re more interested in the BIG PICTURE of property development, than in just building a soccer stadium. Unfortunately, the kids in the Bronx who adore the soccer players didn’t factor into the decision making process.
You aren’t making sense. The team and several developers tried for YEARS to build that stadium over the parking garage at 153rd street across from the Metro North. It was the POLITICIANS who held it up and they gave up. And most of what they are building in Queens next to this is NOT market rate. A large part is “affordable”. So you have your details all mixed up. They literally took the same proposed plan -and moved it to Queens – including the hotel and school. Right before Bloomberg left office he stated the project would be done in The Bronx next to Yankee Stadium (who was part owner of NYCFC). It was the Deblasio administration who killed it. These are not my opinion
The stadium may have 287 ADA seats, but alas there is no way for a wheelchair bound person to get there by taking the 7 train to Mets-willets point station. No wheel chair ramp or elevator at this station. Very surprising considering the station serves City Field and USTA.
Thanks for stating the obvious. The same can be said about just about EVERY ADA accessible park or structure in NYC. Nothing that’s likely to significantly change in the coming decades – it’s just not a socially demanded priority.
Great location! We need more people in Flushing, it’s not overpopulated enough!
Can it be used for The Jets and Giants of the NFL?
I mean for a few New York American Football games.
They should have put their stadium at Aqueduct Raceway. Instead they tried for the West Side of Manhattan. Now Aqueduct is closing anyway and both of those teams – now the World Cup Final (biggest sporting event in the world) – are stuck in the swamp in Jersey still
I’m not a soccer fan, but I’m happy for those who are, many of whom live in nearby Corona and Jackson Heights.
I just wish everyone would stop calling this area, best described as East Corona, Willets Point. That location is really in Whitestone on the shore of Long Island Sound at Fort Totten. The confusion arose when the MTA shortened the name of the #7 train station adjacent to Shea Stadium and now Citi Field, which was originally “Willets Point Boulevard.” That obscure street ends there, having begun miles to the east at the fort. The name actually has has no genuine historical connection with the area being redeveloped. I preferred the old nickname of “Iron Triangle” to the current distortion of history and geography.
who is the general contractor? Turner Construction?
Geez why is my comment not published?
All I am asking for is who is the GC
Happens to be Turner Construction